EU: additional measures for fast rail freight at borders

30.10.2020

The European Commission has taken additional measures to improve the rapid flow of goods by rail now that most Member States are in full or partial lockdown. This is to ensure that the trains are not unnecessarily stopped at the borders or are hindered by the second corona wave.

The concept of so-called «green priority roads» for professional freight transport, which was introduced in March of this year, is thus getting an update from Brussels. The Commission points out that 90 per cent of the 178 main border crossings in the Trans European Traffic Network (TEN-T) already have good traffic flow. This means that freight traffic does not have to wait longer than 15 minutes at the borders.

No brake tests

There are still longer waiting times n rail freight transport (5 per cent) in EU Member States that are not part of the Schengen Agreement. That is why the European Commission now urges the EU Member States to temporarily postpone the implementation and monitoring of deviating national rules for cross-border rail transport. This includes the mandatory brake tests.

Brussels also wants the Member States to act flexibly from now on with regard to the compulsory language knowledge of drivers and traffic centers. The basic principle here is that communication takes place in a language that both parties understand. That does not have to be the language of the host country, according to Brussels.

Analytics on topic
Report
30.09.2021
Report
30.09.2021
Rail Container Transportation in Eurasia in the First Half of 2021
In the first half of 2021, 336,598 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) were transported along the Eurasian railway transit route in the China—Europe—China direction, which is 50% more than in the first half of 2020.
Report
06.06.2019
Report
06.06.2019
China’s High-Speed Rail Development
Over the past decade, China has built 25,000 km of dedicated high-speed railway—more than the rest of the world combined. China’s High-Speed Rail Development examines the Chinese experience to draw lessons for countries considering investing in high-speed rail.